40 comments so far

I do understand that it’s not a particularly noob-friendly router bit, but knocking the score because of that is poor judgement. Had the bit not work as intended, or didn’t stay sharp for too long, that would be grounds for knocking it down a couple of stars.

I am not much of a tool reviewer, in fact I’ve never reviewed a tool. That said, the OP, deducted stars due to the lack of documentation, I am guessing. That seems to be his main gripe. I bought one of the MLCS lock miter bits. On their website they included a short video and offer a set up block to help with the set up. It is a daunting set up, but produces a fine joint. Just remember to save a set up block for different thicknesses.

It’s very expensive yet very difficult to use and also did not solve the problem I bought it for.

No instructions were provided with the bit. They ARE on the Web, but not easy to find (try searching for “Whiteside 3362 instructions” without quotes and see for yourself). There is no video.

If you don’t have an adjustable-height router table and a highly adjustable fence, the setup would be more than daunting.

Nothing in the description suggested that it was not suitable for plywood; it did not work as expected. Plywood is what I use for most boxes where this joint would be useful.

No setup block was created for it, as they are for similar products from other manufacturers. If there was, I’d buy one and use it.

On Amazon,

Two stars means “I don’t like it.”

Three stars means “it’s ok”.

Four stars means “I like it.”

Five stars means “I love it.”

Given what I experienced in trying to use it, it’s hard to imagine rating it more than “it’s ok”. I could have said “I don’t like it,” but I see that it has potential for some applications, even if it is not a general-purpose tool. I did not say “I like it” because I paid a lot of money and it did not solve my problem.

A lot of people rate either 1 or 5 stars. I have written 565 reviews for Amazon to date, and I am consistent with my ratings; I think I have given it a fair rating. The purpose of a three-star review is to warn people to think twice about buying the bit. I wish I had read a review like mine before putting the money down.

It’s not my general nature to be disagreeable, and I don’t use this particular bit, but I have come to use Whiteside bits exclusively, expensive or not, simply because I have had great results with every one I have used. And my work is pretty demanding, a tearout or chip is a real mess. I believe they are certainly among the best available at any price. Sorry you had a so-so experience. But that has never been mine.Roger

I am not slamming Whiteside, or even the quality of the bit. It seems high quality. I have been happy with other Whiteside products. This review is about one particular bit that was not straightforward to use, in part because of lack of information.

I have been using Whiteside router bits for 25+ years and when some one wants to know what’s the best router bit out there I always recommend Whiteside. Mark it seems unfair to blame your inexperience on the manufacturer. Whiteside is used by many pro shops nation wide so I don’t believe Whiteside feels it necessary to have instructions on all of there routers bits which I would guess run in the hundreds. This seems a lot like blaming a certain brand of car because you ran into a tree when driving. This particular stile of router bit is tricky to set up and takes even a little more time when you have never used one before and can be frustrating. Other less costly router bits may have instructions on how to use their router bits, so you have a choice go with a quality Whiteside router bit or lesser quality bits with instructions.I would guess there are a dozens of websites on how to set up a lock miter router bit like this one.http://www.garymkatz.com/trimtechniques/lock_miters.html next time you might do a little research and see if that will help. I have been in the same boat as you with tools or products I’ve never used before where I want to blame the product only to find out it’s the nut behind the wheel who’s at fault “ME”

“Mark it seems unfair to blame your inexperience on the manufacturer.”

I did NOT blame my EXperience on the manufacturer. As for inexperience, this is a new-ish product, and I imagine that everyone had their first time with it.

If you read my Amazon review, in particular the comment I left with where to find instructions, I DID do research before I tried to use it. It took time to find any information on how to do it, especially the manufacturer’s instructions. Thanks for garymkatz’s info, but in my research, I did not find that, either.

Listen, guys, a three star review is not a BAD review. It describes the problems anyone could have. YMMV. There is nothing scathing or insulting in my review. There’s no reason you have to defend Whiteside, because I did not attack them.

SHEESH, I’ll stop posting reviews here altogether if it means getting attacked as a “noob” (I am not) with “poor judgement” or “nut behind the wheel”. I simply posted a review that I thought would be useful to someone considering this PRODUCT… not this COMPANY. Give me a break!

I have the same bit by a different maker and it is not as easy as dropping the bit into the router table and hitting the ON button. For $77 I too would expect at least a sheet of paper or two with some crude drawings and some instructions, even if badly written in Chinglish, explaining the basics of setup. Yes they’re available on the web, but for $77 I want it in the box, not buried somewhere online for me to find and print-out. We’ve had reviews slamming a product because they didn’t like the customer service (or praising a product that arrived broken because the company replaced it so quickly). If we can go that far off track then I don’t see anything wrong with judging this bit by its lack of included instructions or the need to use a certain type of lift or its inability to cut plywood.

I completely understand the review. Mark is completely right, the joint is not satisfactory for plywood, other router joints work with plywood just fine, so stating that int he description is no too much to ask. After fighting this type of router bit (my particular one was from Woodcraft, I later bought another from Freud) off and on for months, once I finally got the settings dialed in, I stopped everything and headed out for a chunk of hdpe the same thickness as my workpieces to make setup blocks so I could repeat this joint if I ever needed it. My initial attempts to use this bit with my Hitachi router mounted in a table saw wing were a total failure. Until I got my Freud router and table setup that had above the table adjustments, the bit was useless. So to sum up

1. needs adequate instructions2. setup blocks for common thickness material should be provided or at least available3. warnings about use with plywood4. warning about router “lift” and /or height fine adjustment

Personally, I love Whiteside bits. Until my local Woodcraft dropped the brand, they were always my go to solution. I still order them when I have the time to wait (although I now really like the Freud Quadra cut bits and Woodcraft has them on the shelf). But any bit or bit set that takes more than a quick test run or two to be sure of the setup, should have something on the package that states that fact. Even some silly rating like , beginner, intermediate, or expert would be better than nothing. Lacking any of that, there is no way I would give a product a 5 star rating. I think a lukewarm rating is perfect. I know I tend to note the number of 5 star ratings, but not really read them, same with the 1 star, the 2-4 star ratings usually have some information worth knowing before you buy…

Among those of you who have criticized me for posting a review that reflects my true experiences, especially those of you who say it is unfair to attack Whiteside (which I did not), NONE of you has posted ANY review for Whiteside products.

If you’re a fan, don’t you think you would do more to help Whiteside by talking about your good experiences, and provide your insights on proper use for those with lesser experience than yourselves, than to jump on me for giving a honest and detailed first-hand review of my experience?

I think everyone is criticizing you because you’re turning newcomers off to an exceptional bit manufacturer due to your own inexperience. Personally, I would never use a sexy joint (like the lock miter joint)on plywood, the material just doesn’t support it. That’s a lot like expecting magnificent results when dovetailing plywood drawers…just not gonna happen.

Perhaps. But the drawer lock bits ARE intended for use with plywood, as shown in videos. That’s a fancy joint, too, and somehow that DOES work with plywood. Plywood is what real people use for drawers and cabinets.

So, according to my critics, Whiteside should not have to provide basic information about what the bit is for, and where it will not work, in their application notes, and I should not criticize them when I get burned by this.

Sure would be nice if those of superior experience would provide access to their wisdom by providing their own reviews instead of criticizing me when I present what I have learned. The difference? I don’t pretend to be the Yoda of woodworking.

The truth is, in woodworking, nobody is a master of ALL aspects of it.

I have been close to buying this bit before but did not. I could see that it was not going to be a cakewalk. Thanks to this review and the conversation that was stirred up, I have learned that a fair amount of research needs to be done prior to taking on a new approach such as this is (to me). Thanks Mark, for opening this up.